A Collaborative Agenda for Improving International Comparative Studies in Education

JOSEPH F. ALIBRANDI is chair and chief executive of Whittaker Corporation and chair of BioWhittaker, Inc. He is a director of BankAmerica Corporation and Bank of America NTS&A, Catellus Development Corporation, Jacobs Engineering Group, and Santa Fe Pacific Corporation. Prior to joining Whittaker, he managed the missiles systems division of Raytheon Company for 18 years, most recently as senior vice president. He is the former chair of the California Business Roundtable Task Force on Education. He also served as chair of the Twelfth District Federal Reserve Bank and chair of the International Policy Committee of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He is a member of the advisory board of Policy Analysis for California Education, chair of ExCEL-Choice in Education League, and director of the Institute for Contemporary Studies. He received a B.S. in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a D.Sc. in business administration from Bryant College.

GORDON M. AMBACH is executive director of the Council of Chief State School Officers, which represents state-level interests in education and provides advocacy for their state and national education policy positions. Previously he served for 10 years as the New York State commissioner of education and president of the University of the State of New York. He also held appointments with the U.S. Office of Education in legislation and program planning. His advisory roles include membership on commissions and panels on learning technology, job training, the arts, and education statistics and assessment. He is currently the U.S. representative to the General Assembly of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement and a member of the Standing Committee. His professional interests have centered on education policy making and legislation. He has a B.A. from Yale University and an M.A. in teaching from Harvard University.

LLOYD BOND is professor of educational research methodology and senior scientist in the Center for Educational Research and Evaluation at the University of North Carolina. Previously he was associate professor of psychology and senior scientist at the Learning Research and Development Center at the University of Pittsburgh. His research interests include educational and psychological measurement, test bias, and cognitive processes underlying test performance. Other recent National Research Council memberships include the Study Group on Guidelines for Mathematics Assessment, the Working Group on Science Assessment Standards, and the Committee on the Performance of Military Personnel. He received a B.S. in psychology from Hillsdale College and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in psychology from Johns Hopkins University.

HERMAN CHERNOFF is professor of statistics at Harvard University. He has also taught statistics at the University of Illinois, Stanford University, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. From 1959 to 1960 he was a fellow at the Center for Advanced Study of Behavioral Sciences. His research interests are in statistical problems in econometrics, the sequential design of experiments, rational selection of decision functions, large sample theory, and pattern recognition. Chernoff's other National Research Council responsibilities have included membership on the Commission on Physical Sciences, Mathematics, and Resources and the Board on Mathematical Sciences. He has a B.S. from City College of New York and Sc.M. and Ph.D. degrees in applied mathematics from Brown University, as well as honorary Sc.D. degrees from Ohio State University and Israel Institute of Technology.

DOROTHY M. GILFORD is director of the National Research Council's Board on International Comparative Studies in Education. Formerly she served as director of the National Center for Education Statistics and as director of the mathematical sciences division of the Office of Naval Research. Her interests are in research program administration, the organization of statistical systems, and education statistics. A fellow of the American Statistical Association, she has served as vice president of the association, chair of its committee on fellows, and chair of its committee on international relations in statistics. She is a member of the International Statistics Institute. She received B.S. and M.S. degrees in mathematics from the University of Washington.

TIMOTHY H. GOLDSMITH is Andrew W. Mellon professor of biology at Yale University. Previously he has been a junior fellow in the Society of Fellows at Harvard University and an instructor at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. From 1967 to 1968 he was a Guggenheim fellow; he is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. His research interests are in neurophysiology and biochemistry of light sensitive systems, particularly the vision of arthropods and the color vision of birds. He chaired the National Research Council's Committee on High School Biology Education. He has a B.A. from Cornell University and a Ph.D. from Harvard University.

JAMES W. GUTHRIE is codirector of Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE) and professor of education, both at the University of California at Berkeley. Before joining the University of California faculty, Guthrie was education specialist for the United States Senate. His research interests include education policy, school finance and governance, and the reform of education systems. His publications include books on school finance, educational administration, strategic planning, and teacher education. He has served as vice president of the American Educational Research Association and currently edits that organization's journal, Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis. He has been honored as an Alfred North Whitehead postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University, visiting fellow at the Department of Educational Studies of Oxford University, and in 1990 was named the American Education Research Association's first senior fellow. He received B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. degrees from Stanford University.

EDWARD H. HAERTEL is professor of education at Stanford University. His research interests center on psychometrics and assessment policy, especially large-scale assessments. He has worked with the National Center for Education Statistics; the National Assessment Governing Board; the Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing; and other public and private organizations on issues concerning the National Assessment of Educational Progress and with various states on issues concerning assessment programs. He has a B.A. in mathematics from the University of Wisconsin and a Ph.D. in education from the University of Chicago.

STEPHEN P. HEYNEMAN is the manager of human resources in the Technical Department for the Europe and Central Asia and Middle East and North Africa Regions of the World Bank. His responsibilities cover policies and lending strategies in health, education, and labor markets. His 1970 academic achievement survey of elementary schools in Uganda was the first in Sub-Saharan Africa, and he has been utilizing international surveys to study problems of educational quality in developing and industrialized countries since that time. His other research interests include higher education finance and management, policy reforms in vocational education, examinations and standardized testing, cognitive skills, and labor productivity. He is currently managing a study of Russian universities. He is the president of the Comparative and International Education Society. He received a B.A. in political science from the University of California at Berkeley, an M.A. in African studies from the University of California at Los Angeles, and a Ph.D. in comparative education from the University of Chicago.

DANIEL G. HORVITZ is distinguished institute scientist at the Research Triangle Institute where he has also been executive vice president and vice president for statistical sciences. His research interests are survey design and methods, with emphasis on cost-effective ways to improve data quality. He is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Statistical Association, which he has served as vice president, and a member of the International Statistical Institute. He received a B.S. from the University of Massachusetts and a Ph.D. in statistics from Iowa State University.

MICHAEL W. KIRST is professor of education and codirector of Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE), both at Stanford University. Before joining the Stanford faculty, he held several positions with the federal government, including staff director of the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Manpower, Employment and Poverty and director of program planning and evaluation for the Bureau of Elementary and Secondary Education in the U.S. Office of Education (now the U.S. Department of Education). He is a member of the research staff of the Center for Policy Research in Education and has served as a member of the National Academy of Education (since 1979), vice president of the American Educational Research Association, commissioner of the Education Commission of the States, and member (1975-81) and president (1977-81) of the California State Board of Education. He has authored and coauthored several books on schools and public accountability. He received an A.B. from Dartmouth College and M.P.A. and Ph.D. degrees from Harvard University.

GAEA LEINHARDT is a senior scientist at the Learning Research and Development Center and professor of education at the University of Pittsburgh. She has directed projects on program evaluation, teacher assessment, and teacher expertise in mathematics and history. Her research interests focus on classroom instruction and learning in specific subject areas as well as in understanding how instructional explanations are constructed and when they are effective. She has worked on the design of innovative assessment techniques for teachers and students for the National Board of Professional Teacher Standards and several state departments of education. She received a B.A. in Russian civilization and an M.S. in urban education from the University of Chicago and a Ph.D. in research methodology from the University of Pittsburgh.

PAUL G. LEMAHIEU is director of the Delaware Education Research and Development Center and associate professor of educational studies at the University of Delaware. He also holds a senior appointment in the cabinet of the state superintendent of public instruction as special advisor for educational policy in the Delaware Department of Public Instruction. He has served as director of research, evaluation, and student assessment for the Pittsburgh public schools and adjunct associate professor of education at the University of Pittsburgh. His research interests are in assessment, minority education, and effective schools. His other National Research Council memberships include the Mathematical Sciences Education Board and the National Summit on Mathematics Assessment Steering Committee. He received an A.B. in philosophy and psychology from Yale University, an Ed.M. in educational development and evaluation from Harvard University, and a Ph.D. in educational research methodology from the University of Pittsburgh.

MARY M. LINDQUIST is Fuller E. Callaway professor of mathematics education at Columbus College and is president of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and vice chair of the National Research Council's Mathematical Sciences Education Board. Her teaching has included junior high school, high school, and college mathematics. From 1972 to 1976 she was assistant scientist at the University of Wisconsin Research and Development Center. Professional activities include serving on the executive committee of the Board of Directors of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, on a working group for the development of the Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics, on the advisory board to the National Center for Research in Mathematical Sciences Education, and on the National Advisory Governing Board's committee to set standards for the National Assessment of Educational Progress as well as on the committees to develop items for the past six mathematical assessments. She has written publications on elementary and secondary mathematics education and served on the editorial board of the Journal for Research in Mathematics Education. She received a B.A. in mathematics education from the University of North Carolina, an M.A. in mathematics from Southern Methodist University, and a Ph.D. in mathematics education from the University of Wisconsin.

HAROLD NISSELSON is an independent statistical consultant in Falls Church, Virginia. He has recently served as a consultant in studies for several U.S. government agencies, the government of Norway, and the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. Previously he has served as senior survey statistician at Westat, Inc., associate director for statistical standards and methodology at the U.S. Bureau of the Census, and assistant director for research at the National Center for Education Statistics. His other National Research Council memberships have included the Panel on Incomplete Data, the Committee on Indicators of Precollege Science and Mathematics Education, and the Panel for Science-Based Careers: A Pilot Study of the Dynamics of Undergraduate Student Choices. He received a B.S. from the City College of New York and has done further study at the Graduate School of New York University and the Graduate School of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

ANDREW C. PORTER is director of the Wisconsin Center for Education Research and professor of educational psychology at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Previously he was codirector of the Institute for Research on Teaching and professor of education at Michigan State University. He has also served as associate director of the National Institute of Education, U.S. Department of Education. His research interests include research on teaching education policy and psychometric research. His other National Research Council memberships include the Study Group on Guidelines for Mathematics Assessment, the Panel to Evaluate the National Center for Education Statistics, and the Committee on the Federal Role in Education Research. He received a B.S. in education from Indiana State University and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in educational psychology from the University of Wisconsin.

FRANCISCO O. RAMIREZ is professor of education and sociology at Stanford University. He is on the editorial boards of Comparative Education Review and Contemporary Sociology and has served as associate editor of Sociology of Education. He is the editor or coauthor of a number of publications. His research interests include studies of the origins and expansion of mass schooling; women's access to education; and education, science, and development. Ramirez received a B.A. from De La Salle College in the Philippines and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from Stanford University.

JOHN R. SCHWILLE is professor and assistant dean for international studies at the College of Education at Michigan State University. His experience includes qualitative as well as quantitative education research in both international and U.S. domestic settings. His involvement in international assessment dates from 1972, when he received a Spencer Fellowship at Stockholm University for analysis of data collected by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement. His current work focuses on comparative issues in school organization and teacher effectiveness. He received a B.A. in the history of France from Harvard University and a Ph.D. in comparative sociology of education from the University of Chicago.

MARSHALL S. SMITH is undersecretary of the U.S. Department of Education. He is on leave from responsibilities as dean of the School of Education and professor of education at Stanford University. During 1992-1993, he was a fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences. He has been an associate professor at Harvard University and a professor at the University of Wisconsin. From 1983 to 1986 he was assistant commissioner for policy studies in the U.S. Office of Education and associate director of the National Institute of Education. He was a member of the Committee on Precollege Indicators of Science and Mathematics Education of the National Research Council's Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education, chair of the Pew Forum on K-12 Education, chair of a National Goals Panel subgroup on the National Assessment System, and a member of the National Council on Education Standards and Testing. His current research interests are systemic school reform, educational equity, and compensatory education. He received an A.B. in psychology from Harvard College, an Ed.M. in measurement and statistics, and an Ed.D. in measurement and statistics from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

FLORALINE I. STEVENS is director of the Program Evaluation and Assessment Branch for the Los Angeles Unified School District. Currently on leave from the district, she is a program director in the Education and Human Resources Directorate of the National Science Foundation. She served as the second senior research fellow at the National Center for Education Statistics. Her interests are program evaluation and research issues focused on at-risk students. She served as vice president for the division on school evaluation and program development of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), chair of the Research Steering Committee for the Council of Great City Schools, and chair of the School Research Directors at AERA; she has served on the National Indicators Panel for the U.S. Department of Education. She received a B.S. from the University of Southern California and M.Ed. and Ed.D. from the University of California at Los Angeles.

JUDITH V. TORNEY-PURTA is professor of human development and affiliate professor of psychology at the University of Maryland, specializing in applied developmental and educational psychology. Formerly she was professor of psychology at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She was the senior author of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement volume reporting the 10-country study of civic education. She has served on the Fulbright Senior Scholar Selection Panel in Psychology and as chair of the International Relations Committee of the American Educational Research Association, and she is a fellow of the American Psychological Association. Her current research interests are in applying cognitive modeling techniques to measure the complexity and constraints in adolescents' views of the political and economic world. She received an A.B. in psychology from Stanford University and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in human development from the University of Chicago.

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